You don't need LED panels on a bus to display British culture. The culture is splattered all over the floor in the form of vomit and urine, in the tags people have carved into the windows and backs of chairs, and in the scorch marks in the fabric

If it's in the name of the Olympics then it must be good. But who cares about £5.4m when the cost is expected to be £9.3bn? You could have your spare ambulances built by Bentley for that money.

I wish Paris had won the Olympic bid.

If that amount had been spent on the NHS, it would have gone towards consultants and mangers.

Vic - it would have gone on financial, management and IT consultants. If they spent some on medical consultants, that would be something.

That's my point. Governments talk about how many billions they will throw at a problem, but not how it will be spent. They can give £1,000 to a staving family to buy food and clothing. Or they can give £50,000 to a consultant who tells them to make better use of their current funds. Which would do the greater good?

"I know it's not the point but..."

It bloody well SHOULD be the point. Where are our priorities when we send millions on projects like the Millenium Dome and Art when we could be using those millions to actually improve health care for the whole country?

If not building the Dome saved enough money to fix all the things it's cost if blamed for, the thing must have cost more than the entire GDP of China and the USA combined. It was 9 years ago - find something else to say we have wasted our money on. An illegal war perhaps. Or Trident. Or Strictly Come Dancing.



Phil

Yes, you're right. We shouldn't spend money on things that might make people happy, that help people enjoy life.

It might only be small thing, but I'm happy to contribute the 7p this will cost me. Y'know what, I'll give an extra 7p to cover you too.

Where are our priorities if we don't make life worth living?

What is the point in having a life worth living if you’re not alive???

I would really really like to see your opinion if you needed life saving treatment but it's not available because the money has been spent on 'art', enjoy sleeping the long sleep.

Obviously you have never seen or given life saving treatment, you don’t know or understand how difficult it is without the appropriate equipment, you have never seen some die because you didn’t have the basic essentials available that you really should have had. Imagine if someone you love had died because an ambulance didn’t have the equipment to save their life and they would still be alive now if it was available, how would you feel?

Do you still think that having fun is better than being alive?
If so that’s just a reflection on what a sad and pathetic person you really are.

The fact that you posted anonymously shows just how ashamed you really are of your comment and how badly you don't want to be associated with it.

You're absolutely right it is not the point. As "anon" says we need to go beyond existance and cultivate joy. I agree that the ambulance service should be better funded. I work in health in New Zealand and know how frustrating it is when the priorities seem upside down. Here they have also just decided to cut special advisors to schools on anything other than the 3 R's (they have already cut 80% of the adult education budget again leaving the 3 R's). I think this is analagous to your point in that I feel it is a pseudo "going back to basics" it is IMO stripping away at the things that give life meaning if we refuse to fund arts and science because we have health needs.

Am I the only one who can see a potential problem in the "talk to one another" bit? How on earth are they going to prevent that from being abused? It will be. It'll be broadcasting who loves or hates who before they know it. At the very least.

As for the "football pitch in Borders woodland" well, we have plenty of football pitches already in Scotland, thanks. Couldn't they use one of them, and save the money? Or use the money to buy football kits and equipment for the many, many struggling teams trying to keep kids off the streets? Just a thought.

Ah yes, the Dome. Among the many ideas about how we should celebrate the turn of a new century, one foolish individual thought the construction, and running of a centre of excellence for the treatment of pediatric cancer would be a better option than the current white elephant we have today. Course the government were happier posing with the Dome's entertainers than seriously ill children.

Sorry Tom, our ideas of how to spend money appears very unfashionable. Perhaps you could petition the government to convert the old Green Goddess fire appliances into frontline relief vehicles. What do you think?

There are those in the country with too much power and influence to push through their own personal ideas at the taxpayer's expense. No one committee can think of a money wasting idea, it has to be one individual to submit the proposal.

Imagine the ego boost given to whoever first had the idea of the dome - and who paid for it?

In the East Midlands we are getting -I kid you not- three giant crocheted lions. Still, maybe it will make people laugh and they say laughter is the best medicine...

Sounds like an idea someone would have on The Apprentice.